Keep on Rolling: The Dream of the Automobile

Original Title: Sobre Ruedas: El Sueño del Automóvil
Country of Origin: Spain
Year of completion: 2011
Duration: 56 min.
Format: DVD
Language: Spanish

Film Credits:

Director/Writer: Óscar Clemente
Producer: Julio Vergne
Cinematography: Iván Caso, Eduardo Montero, Manutrillo, Nocem Collado, Alfonso Sanz and Julio Vergne
Editor: Óscar Clemente

Film Synopsis:

In just over a century, cars have completely transformed our way of life. The automobile drove us towards the dream of the consumer society. Nearly a hundred years later, this documentary reflects on the social and environmental consequences of the realization of this promise: A car for each individual and each pocketbook.

In many areas, cars take priority over people. We allocate 62% of our urban space to roads or parking lots; individual home garages are often larger than children’s bedrooms. Devoting so much public space to the least efficient form of transportation has also changed the way we interact with our environment. Children go out much less and watch much more TV. Cities are more dangerous because of the busy roads. People lead more isolated lives, etc. This film examines these and many other implications of our love affair with the car.

The documentary is based on a selection of interviews with several experts in different areas such as town planning, philosophy and engineering, which lead to a reflection on our daily lives and environment as a result of the car phenomenon.

The story is told through animated cartoons and presents contemporary images as well as archival material from the 1950s.